Welcome to our web site!

The Liberal Democrats exist to build and safeguard a fair, free and open society, in which we seek to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community, and in which no-one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity.

Vince Cable comes to Dorking

Vince Cable - LibDem Treasury spokesperson

On July 31st, LibDem Deputy Leader and Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable will be coming to Dorking to address a public meeting. Especially since his performances last year in his role as acting party leader, Vince has been broadly recognised as one of the best speakers at Westminster. His views on the Northern Rock crisis won widespread respect and he has for several years been warning about the risks of over-reliance on debt.

Following Vince's speech, there will be a question and answer session to a panel including Vince, Mole Valley Parliamentary Candidate Alice Humphreys and local Lib Dem councillors.

The meeting will be held in the Christian Centre, Church Street, Dorking. Please arrive at 7:30 for an 8pm start. The meeting is open to all, but please e-mail info@molevalleylibdems.org.uk if you hope to come so we know how many people to expect.

Defend services at Epsom Hospital

Alice Humphreys leads the protest at Epsom Hospital

Alice Humphreys and campaign group "Hope for Women and Children" held a demonstration to protest against threats to close the maternity unit's delivery ward and the in-patient paediatric ward at Epsom Hospital. The protest took place on Friday 7th March. Alice and many local residents attended the meeting of the Trust Board later that morning. Alice commented "Many residents in the Northern part of Mole Valley are very concerned about the continuing uncertainty over what services will be retained at Epsom hospital. The alternative of driving to St Helier hospital would be likely to delay the arrival of patients needing urgent medical attention. It is simply not good enough."

• Join the Liberal Democrats Today.

• Register for FREE email updates.

Public Meeting on Monday July 21 re Bookham Supermarket proposal Wed 16th Jul 2008 The opinion survey carried out by Liberal Democrat Councillor Anne Howarth (see "Thumbs down to Lower Shott Supermarket" June 10 2008) has continued to reveal massive opposition to the idea first publicly announced in a statement by Conservative Councillor Janet Purkiss. A welcome initiative has been taken by Bookham Residents Association to call a public meeting at the Old Barn Hall, Church Road, Bookham at 8pm next Monday July 21. Members of the Council Executive will be present. A high turnout of local residents and traders is inevitable and searching questions will be asked. Clear answers will be expected.

Lib Dems united in opposing Capel incinerator - Tories face both ways! Fri 11th Jul 2008 Conservative controlled Surrey County Council - including several Mole Valley representatives - has approved adoption of the Surrey Waste Plan which includes building a major incinerator near Capel. Liberal Democrat County Councillors maintained their consistent stand against the plan and once again argued for consideration of alternative waste disposal technologies which would be more environmentally friendly and avoid the health risks which are widely feared to flow from mass incineration.

Dorking Halls Safe Fri 11th Jul 2008 Mole Valley District Council agreed on 3 June to maintain the in-house management arrangements for the Dorking Halls thereby removing the threat of privatisation that has hung over the Halls for more than a year. The controlling Conservative Group had decided that it might be cheaper to hand the management of the Halls over to a private company or a trust and engaged in a costly exercise to find out how much money they might save. The answer was very little and they have now agreed to abandon the exercise.

Thumbs down to Lower Shott supermarket Tue 10th Jun 2008 Only when one of the retailers in Grove Corner, Bookham spoke to Councillor Anne Howarth did she realise that a developer was seeking to build a large supermarket on this site in the heart of her ward. This would inevitably mean the demolition of the row of shops (including that rarity - a fishmongers) and several houses, albeit the suggested development was said to include some "affordable housing".

Lib Dems welcome change of mind on start time for free bus passes Mon 3rd Mar 2008 Following pressure from Liberal Democrat councillors, Tory-controlled Mole Valley District Council has set the start time for the new bus pass scheme at 9am thus reversing the original decision to delay the start-time to 9:30am on Mondays to Fridays. The previous plan would have prevented many residents from benefiting from the scheme when they needed an earlier start. In Box Hill, for example, residents would not have been able to use the new bus pass on the 9:15 bus, so would have had to wait till after 11:30 to start their journeys. Other villages with infrequent services would have faced similar problems. Even where bus services are more frequent, the later start time would have inconvenienced many people with hospital or doctors' appointments. Under the new decision, the start-time for the new bus pass will remain at 9am.

Pump Corner - Tory County Council Takes No Action Mon 3rd Mar 2008 The County Council's Pump Corner Task Group, set up following a meeting with residents last November, has finally met. However, the Tory controlled County Council has failed to explain why the changes to Pump Corner introduced last year included elements, such as the West Street traffic lights, which were not in the original proposals presented to and agreed by residents; it has also failed to bring forward to the Task Group a viable set of options to improve traffic flow through the junction.

Archive of earlier news stories.

You are not logged in.